ES2271432T3 - POWDERED SERUM WITH IMPROVED TASTE. - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention refers to whey powder and whey permeate powder containing at least 60% by weight of beta -lactose, to a process for producing such powder by (i) adjusting the pH of whey and whey permeate respectively to a value of about 5.5 to 9.5, (ii) optionally partially demineralizing the product obtained in step (i), and (iii) drying the product of step (ii) before crystallization takes place, to the use of such powder in food applications and to products especially confectionery and chocolate made by the use of such powder.

Description

Powdered whey with improved flavor.

Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to serum in powder and whey permeate powders with improved flavor in terms of salinity, palate sensation and sweetness, to a procedure for its production, to the use of these powders in applications food and products, especially sweets and chocolate made with the use of said powders.

Background of the invention

Whey is obtained as a byproduct in the cheese or casein manufacturing. It can be used as such or after ultrafiltration as serum permeate to produce Whey powder or whey permeate powders that are used at your once in food applications Whey normally contains approximately 11 to 12% by weight of proteins that are separated by ultrafiltration Whey permeate contains 0 to approximately 3% by weight protein.

The conventional procedure to produce Whey powder and whey permeate powders from whey and of serum permeate is the cooling of the suspensions at not less than 15 ° C, preferably 30 to 40 ° C for initiate lactose crystallization (See A. Topel, "Chemie und Physik der Milch ", VEB Fachbuchvertrag, Leipzig 1981, pages 47-54) and the suspensions obtained are dried subsequently by spraying, to give whey powder and whey permeate powders respectively.

Whey powder and whey permeate powder are used as a cheap ingredient in food applications. They are used as substitutes for more expensive ingredients. However, whey powder and whey permeate powders produced by the conventional procedures described above have several negative sensory attributes.They have salty, metallic or bitter taste and produce powdery and dry sensation on the palate when used in significant amounts in certain applications. Food especially chocolate. Besides its sweetness is
low.

The object of the present invention is provide a whey powder and whey permeate powders with improved flavor

Compendium of the invention

The present invention provides whey powder and improved whey permeate powders containing at least 60, preferably at least 70 and most preferably at least 80% in β-lactose weight

The present invention further provides serum. powder and whey permeate powders containing at least 60% by weight of β-lactose that can be obtained by the stages of:

(i)

pH adjustment of serum and permeate serum, respectively at a value of approximately 9

(ii)

optionally demineralization partial of the product obtained in step (i), and

(iii)

drying of the product of stage (ii) before crystallization takes place

The invention further relates to corresponding procedure to produce this whey powder and whey permeate powders and the use of such powders as a replacement substitute for whey powder and powder Conventional serum permeate, sucrose or any other hydrate of carbon in confectionery and chocolate products.

The invention relates, finally, to products, especially food products, products confectionery and chocolate that have been made using the Whey powder and powders of enhanced serum permeates.

Detailed description of the invention

In the conventional procedure for Production of whey powder and whey pemeate powders, whey and serum permeate, respectively, is cooled not less than 15 ° C to initiate crystallization of lactose. The suspensions are subsequently dried, to give whey powder and powders of serum permeate respectively. Both processes provide mainly lactose in its α form, whey powder that It contains approximately 70% by weight of α-lactose and whey permeate powder that contains approximately 80% by weight of α-lactose. In contrast to this, the manufacture of whey or whey permeate according to this invention provides an improved powder in terms of taste and that It contains at least 60% by weight of β-lactose. The dry, floury taste of conventional powders that have α-lactose is reduced in the powders of the present invention containing β-lactose and the powders according to the invention have an increased and better sweetness solubility.

The conversion of lactose, mainly to its β-isomer, is achieved by drying without preceding crystallization. Whey powder and powders whey permeate containing at least 60% by weight of β-lactose can be prepared by drying spray without preceding crystallization. A procedure preferred for drying of serum and serum permeate respectively It is the one carried out by roller drying or similar technology. He Whey powder and whey permeate powder containing more than 80% by weight of β-lactose can be prepared With this drying technique. The roller drying technique is described, for example, in U.S. Patent 1,954,602 and British Patent 1,036,368.

US Patent 4088791 describes the obtaining neutralized whey powder by a procedure Similary.

In the art, it is known that? -Lactose can be transformed into? -Lactose, for example by crystallization of solution in methanol (US Pat. No. 3,511,226) by adding small amounts of water to? lactose and extrusion (US Pat. No. 4,083,733 and JP 62115300) or by treating α-lactose at a temperature above 120 ° C, under pressure and in the presence of alcohols (US Pat. No. 4,799,966 ), however, the production of whey powder and whey permeate powders with a content of at least 60% by weight of β- is not known in the art.
lactose.

A significant flavor improvement is achieved by increasing the pH value without physically separating the minerals

A preferred procedure to prepare the Whey powder and enhanced whey permeate powders, whey or serum permeate (obtained as a by-product by Conventional serum ultrafiltration) undergoes the following stages:

(i)

pH adjustment of serum and permeate serum, respectively, at a value of approximately 9

(ii)

optionally demineralization partial of the product obtained in stage i), and

(iii)

drying of the product of stage ii) before crystallization takes place

In contrast to the conventional procedure, a stage dedicated to crystallization is not necessary

The sequence of stages i) and ii) can be invert, that is, serum and serum permeate can be First demineralize and then adjust the pH. Stage ii) is optional or the degree of demineralization can be 0.

The pH adjustment or alkalinization can be carried out by the addition of alkaline material, preferably aqueous solutions of sodium hydroxide, potassium hydroxide, sodium carbonate, potassium carbonate and calcium hydroxide. The pH is adjusted to a value of approximately 9.0. The pH adjustment greatly improves the quality of the
taste.

The adjustment of serum pH and serum permeate is a known process of prior techniques but for different purposes. Neutralization / precipitation (sometimes in combination with a heat treatment and / or phosphate treatment and separation) is used to separate certain fractions such as proteins and / or minerals (see, for example, US-A-5,639,501 and US Pat. A-3,864,506). Neutralization by calcium or magnesium compounds is described in European Patent EP-A-0.619.075 to improve spray drying specifically of acid whey / serum permeate. The neutralization and acidity control is described in US-A-2,232,248 to improve drying. US-A-5,185,174 describes the addition of CaO and phosphate to produce a non-hygroscopic powder. Patent GB-A-2,293,825 describes a process for the manufacture of acid casein serum where the starting concentrated liquid serum is treated with a base to raise the pH from 6.0 to 6.9 and then concentrated by nanofiltration. . The purpose of pH adjustment is not mentioned in this Patent. In addition, the first stage of concentration is done by ultrafiltration with which the lactose is separated. The use of serum permeate is not described in this
patent.

Whey or serum permeate with the adjusted pH is optionally partially demineralized then. This can be done by electrodialysis, ion exchange or preferably by nanofiltration or crystallization. This treatment, as mentioned above, can be carried out first, before adjusting the pH of the serum or serum permeate. In US-A-5,639,501, EP-A-0,408,756, EP-A-0,536,612 and JP-A-63087944, for example, the demineralization of serum is described by different techniques. The nanofiltration technique, which is preferred, is described by Kelly PM et al. in IDF , Special Number 9201 (1992) 130-140 or in van der Horst HC et al., IDF Bulletin 311 (1996) 9-11.

Before or after the pH adjustment, the serum or serum permeate is concentrated by evaporation to a solids content preferably of about 70%. For this purpose, the serum or whey permeate is heated to a temperature in the range of 50 ° C to 80 ° C and the moisture is partially removed under vacuum, for example in a multi-effect falling film evaporator as described, for example, Spellacy J- R- in "Casein, dried and condensed serum" Lithotype Process Co, S. Francisco (1953), page 489 et seq. or in US Pat.
6,335,045.

The serum, concentrated, with the adjusted pH and, optionally, partially demineralized, or whey powder is finally dry (before crystallization of the lactose to α-lactose) by any technique convenient, preferably by spray drying or even more preferably by roller drying. Drying by spraying results in a whey powder or permeate powder of serum containing at least 60% by weight of β-lactose. For the preferred drying by roller higher content can be obtained, for example more than 80% by weight of β-lactose. The drying technique by roller is described, for example, in US Pat. 1,954,602 and British Patent 1,036,368. A temperature of Preferred roller is, for example, 140 ° C. An optimal setting of temperature is important for optimal performance during drying it is governed by factors such as mineral content and degree of darkening. However, it they can use temperatures in the range of 110 to 180 ° C. The roller temperature and speed can be adjusted according to the mineral content of the whey material.

The combination of pH adjustment, optional partial demineralization and specific drying, which gives lactose in its β form instead of its α form, finally provides a whey powder or whey permeate powder that is superior in taste . Typical components of cow's whey are lactose, proteins, minerals and milk fat. Minerals are responsible for the salty, metallic taste of whey powders. Its content is typically in the range of about 7 to 11% by weight. Magnesium chloride and calcium are the biggest contributors. It has been identified that the overall flavor intensity is significantly reduced if the pH value is increased. A preferred reagent is sodium hydroxide, but the same effect is also achieved using potassium hydroxide or sodium or potassium carbonate or calcium hydroxide. It can also be achieved using other methods, for example electrodialysis, ion exchange or crystallization. The significance of the invention is due to the fact that a strong reduction in salty flavor is achieved although the minerals are not physically separated, thus avoiding the generation of unwanted secondary currents. It has been shown that the solubility of various salts responsible for salinity is reduced. This applies, for example, to magnesium that is bound as hydroxide at higher pH values, while freely available to tongue receptor cells at lower pH values. A second effect may be directly related to increased pH values while acidity is reduced. The acidity or perception of the acid taste is not only related to free H + ions but also to HA acids that are predominant species in acids
weak.

In contrast to a conventional procedure, the crystallization stage is not contemplated. Whey powder and whey permeate powder is conventionally pre-crystallized before spray drying. In the process described by this invention, crystallization needs to be avoided in order to obtain a high yield in β-lactose. For roller drying, crystallization is conventional and in this procedure it is not
relevant.

Whey powder or whey permeate powder according to the present invention can be used to replace conventional dairy powders, sucrose or any other carbohydrate, in food applications to improve sensory characteristics and simultaneously reduce ingredient costs. The whey powder and whey permeate powder of the present invention are especially useful in the production of sweets and
chocolate.

The invention is illustrated below with the following examples.

Examples Example 1

A serum permeate, obtained as a byproduct in cheese production, it was partially demineralized by nanofiltration, separating the mineral ions according to the Table given to continuation. The solution obtained was concentrated to 60% content of solids by heating at 70 ° C and evaporation. After the pH adjustment with aqueous NaOH at a pH value of 9, dried in a roller dryer at a temperature of 140 ° C (steam pressure 2.5 bar) The product obtained was a powder containing 85% by weight of β-lactose. The sensory results of a panel of experts clearly demonstrated that permeate powder Whey in this example was superior in terms of sweetness and taste salted, when compared with conventional whey permeate powder  containing mainly α-lactose. Was also superior to dusts produced by elimination of any of the mentioned process steps and especially higher than Powders produced without pH adjustment to 9.0. The impact of the improvement of quality by pH adjustment has been unexpected as such.

The product was added to chocolate mixtures of Conventional milk replacing sweet whey powder and saccharose

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Original Stage 1 Stage 2 Nanofiltration Adjustment of pH Ashes totals 8.0 4.6 4.6 Sodium 0.7 0.4 0.7 Potassium 2.7 1.3 1.3 Magnesium 0.1 0.1 0.1 Calcium 0.4 0.4 0.4 Chloride 1.9 0.5 0.5 Phosphate 0.7 0.5 0.5 Protein total 4.0 2.3 2.3 pH 6.5 6.5 9.0

Example 2

Whey permeate was concentrated, obtained as by-product in cheese production, up to 75% of solids by heating at 70 ° C and evaporation. After adjustment of pH with aqueous sodium hydroxide at a value of 8.5, dried in a roller dryer at a temperature of 120 ° C (pressure of steam 1.5 bar). The product obtained was a powder with a content 79% by weight of β-lactose. The results sensory experts from a panel of experts clearly demonstrated that the whey permeate powder of this example was superior in terms of sweetness and salinity compared to whey permeate powder to which the pH had not been adjusted. The product was added to normal milk chocolate blends to replace the powder of Sweet serum and sucrose.

Claims (12)

1. Procedure for the production of powder whey or whey permeate powder containing at least 60% in β-lactose weight, by the steps of

(i)

pH adjustment of serum and permeate serum, respectively, at a value of approximately 9

(ii)

optionally demineralization partial of the product obtained in step (i), and

(iii)

drying of the product of stage (ii) before crystallization takes place

2. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that the sequences of steps (i) and (ii) are reversed. 3. Method according to claims 1 or 2, characterized in that the demineralization is carried out by electrodialysis, ion exchange, nanofiltration or crystallization. 4. Process according to claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the drying of the product , pH adjusted and optionally partially demineralized product is effected by spray drying or roller drying. 5. Use of whey powder or powder whey permeate, which contains at least 60% by weight of β-lactose as a substitute to replace whey powder or whey permeate powder, conventional, or any other carbohydrate in confectionery applications. 6. Use of the product according to the Claim 5 in the production of chocolate. 7. Use of the product according to claim 5 or claim 6, characterized in that the whey powder or whey permeate can be obtained by the steps of:

(i)

pH adjustment of serum and permeate serum, respectively, at a value of approximately 9

(ii)

optionally demineralization partial of the product obtained in step (i), and

(iii)

drying of the product of stage (ii) before crystallization takes place

8. Use according to claim 7, characterized in that the sequence order of steps (i) and (ii) is reversed. 9. Use according to claims 7 to 8, characterized in that the demineralization is carried out by electrodialysis, ion exchange, nanofiltration or crystallization. 10. Use according to claims 7 to 9, characterized in that the drying of the product with the adjusted pH and optionally partially demineralized is carried out by spray drying or roller drying. 11. Chocolate obtainable by using powder of whey or whey permeate powder according to claims 5 to 10. 12. Use of whey powder or whey permeate containing at least 60% by weight of β-lactose to reduce salty taste, preferably without physical separation of minerals, in applications of conifitería, preferably in chocolate.